Referral advertising has become one of the best strategies to send paid traffic to your products or services, finding people who are already interested, and incentivizing them to share it. But how exactly does it work? And just as importantly, how can you use referral links to 10x your marketing? In this guide, we’ll tell you all you could ever want or need to know about referral link marketing and give you actionable techniques to make the most of your referrals.
What is Referral Link Marketing and Why You Should Use It?
Referral Link Marketing Explained
Referral link marketing is when companies motivate their current customers, partners, or affiliates to refer new customers by offering them unique tracking links. If the viewer clicks on such a link and performs a particular action (for example, makes a purchase, signs up on the site, or subscribes to the service), the owner of the link will receive a reward.
Advantages of Using Referral Links in Marketing
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Low-cost expansion: As a low-upfront-cost alternative to large ad campaigns, referral marketing takes advantage of an established base of loyal customers or affiliates to attract new users.
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“Word-of-mouth-trust”: There is a big difference when friends, co-workers, “influencers” or known personalities are endorsing a product rather than that being touted through traditional advertising.
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Easy trackings: Individual links for referring parties means that tracking the performance and ROI is a breeze.
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Higher conversion ratios: Referred leads generally had higher conversion rates than those from other sources.
Writing Good Referrer Links
It’s a bit of an art to craft a referral link the right way. The following is a step-by-step how-to for creating the kind of links that get results.
Step 1: Select the Right Platform
Identify the right referral marketing platform for your business. First and foremost, you are going to need to choose a referral marketing platform that suits your business. Popular choices include:
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Referral Candy for e-commerce stores
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Affiliate spider: Affiliate spider was created in 2010 by Affiliate spider, a gathering vast amount of vast ,experience in affiliate marketing.
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Ambassador for B2B and the enterprise
These are systems that make it easier to manage and generate referral links.
Step 2: Personalize the URLs
Custom-branded referral links are memorable and credible. For instance, a URL with random characters, which is just stupid: […] Instead of those use:
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www.yourbusiness.com/refer-jessica
This gives a personal feeling, which is rare and appreciated by people.
Step 3: Clarify the Rewards
Make explicit what you are both getting out of this whole thing. Discounts, cash back or free products are incentives that work well. For instance:
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Referrer gets $10 in cash back.
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A referred friend will receive 15% off their first purchase
Unambiguous and attractive rewards would result in more shares.
Step 4: Make Sure Your Site is Mobile Friendly
Many users tap links on their phones, so be sure your links are mobile-friendly. This also covers ensuring the referral landing page is optimized, easy to navigate, and user-friendly.
Ways to Share Referral Links
Promote Promotion
Promotion is a key factor to bring your word-of-mouth marketing to success. Here is how to make sure your links are placed in front of the right people.
Leverage Current Customers
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Email Campaigns: Email your referral program to your current email list. Add a call-to-action (CTA) that prompts happy customers to share their referral links.
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In the box: Besides a card/paper insert recommending other products, you could also throw in referral links for discounts on future purchases.
Leverage Social Media
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Influencer Partnerships: Work with influencers in the same niche as you are. They can share your referral links with their followers in an efficient way.
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UGC: Ask customers to post photos, videos, or feedback with their referral links.
Use Incentivized Ads
Advertise with pay-per-click (PPC) ads or social media, about how to educate potential customers about your referral program. Be sure to add a link for instant sign-ups.
You can take advantage of these channels to get the most reach for your referral links. But what happens next? You track performance.
Monitor and Analyze the Effectiveness of Referral Links
One of the great benefits of referral link marketing is that it can actually be measured. You can refine strategies and enhance results by tracking these key metrics.
Metrics to Track
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Click-Through Rate (CTR): This is the number of people who clicked on your referral links.
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Conversion Rate: Percentage of visitors who made a desired action.
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Referral Source Performance: What type of customers (or referrers) are generating the most sales? Spend more on your top contributors.
Recommended Tools
The following are some tools to evaluate those referral numbers:
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Google Analytics: Track clicked links.
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Referral platforms: (such as Referral Candy or Refersion) for those who want to track everything.
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Bespoke Dashboards in your CRM system that provide cross-departmental visibility.
With data in hand, you can optimize and scale your referral marketing campaigns. For more information, here are some past examples.
8 Errors to Refrain From While Marketing with a Referral Link
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Lack of Testing: Not testing end-to-end click-out tracking flow for referral links between desktop and mobile or between platforms can result in a broken user experience or broken links.
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Sin No. 3: Undervaluing Rewards: If the reward isn’t worth it, if it doesn’t create enough value, users won’t share or take action.
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Making it Too Complex: A complex referral system can be overwhelming for users and will drive participation down. Keep it simple.
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Ignoring Follow-ups: Without reminders of their rewards, referrers can lose interest or faith in your program.
By steering clear of these, you can make sure your referral campaigns are effective and user-friendly.
Get the Most Out of Referral Link Marketing Now
Word of mouth is a timeless marketing tactic, and referral link marketing is the online version of this powerful technique. Whether you’re acquiring new customers, increasing customer loyalty, or raising brand awareness, there’s no better way to do it than with referral programs.
If you’re ready to ramp up your business with referral link marketing, start by generating your custom, mobile-optimized links. Feature them in your highest-engagement channels, monitor performance closely, and test for optimization on an ongoing basis.
Have questions or need assistance with getting started? Tell us in the comments section below, or check out tools like Referral Candy or Jasper AI, which can help you launch your converting campaigns.
